Through Hell and Back
by Shiori07
Summary: AU one-shot (might become a story). Ed and Al have lived on their own for years, trying to deal with their past and just live another day. But what happens when their house burns down? Will they be able to cope anymore or will they plunge into an unimaginable hell? Rated T for some language.


Through Hell and Back

**A/N: Hey guys! So this a one-shot I've had in my head for a while. It might become an actual story, but I want to see how it is received as a one-shot first. Thanks for clicking on this story. Hope you like it.**

**Disclaimer-I do not own Fullmetal Alchemist or any of its characters. I only own the plot to this story.**

"Brother! Wait for me!" Ed stopped at the top of the hill and looked behind him at his brother, who was struggling to keep up.

Ed smiled. "Come on, Al! I'm gonna leave you behind if you don't run faster!"

"I'm trying!" Al complained, panting as he finally came to stand next to his brother. "But _someone _had to wait for Winry."

Ed looked down the hill in confusion, finally noticing the blond girl that just reached the foot of the hill. He frowned. "Winry!" He yelled, slightly annoyed. "Why are you following us?"

"Shut up!" She yelled, slightly out of breath as she got to the top of the hill herself and stood next to Al. She glared at Ed furiously. "I can do whatever I want! You're not the boss of me."

"And who said that I'm not?" Ed challenged.

Winry just looked at him as if the answer were obvious. "Well you're shorter than me. It wouldn't make sense to have a boss that was shorter than me."

Ed's face turned red. "I am _not _short! I just haven't hit my growth spurt yet!"

"Then why is your little brother taller than you?"

"He _is_ not!"

"Um, brother, yes I am."

"Only by an inch."

"Al and I keep telling you to drink your milk, Ed."

"Why would I listen to you? That stuff is disgusting!" Ed shook his head in frustration and anger. "Anyway, we don't have time for this. Mom asked us to come home in time to help with dinner. Is there a reason why you came up here, Winry?"

"Hmph." The girl crossed her arms. "My grandma just wanted me to tell you that you guys are invited to dinner tomorrow."

"Why didn't you just say that up front?" Ed yelled at her.

Al sighed, then looked at Winry. "Thanks, Winry. I'm sure we'll be able to come. We'll tell mom."

"Ok." Winry said, walking back down the hill, waving goodbye. "I'll see you guys at school tomorrow!"

"Yeah, whatever. Come on, Al." Ed grumbled as he made his way down the other side of the hill.

"Bye, Winry!" Al yelled to their friend before following his brother. "Brother, don't be so grumpy. At least _try _to be nice."

"I _am_ nice. I don't know what you're talking about." Ed said smugly.

Al sighed. "Never mind."

After that, it was pretty quiet as they made their way home. They lived in a small house in this small town named Resembol. It was in the eastern part of Amestris, their country. Resembol was a very rural place, the buildings were very spread out and fields could be seen for miles.

As the two, blond, eight and nine year old boys arrived home, Ed unlocked the front door and stepped inside. "Mom?" He said. "We're home."

There was the sound of footsteps and Trisha Elric, their mother, entered into the hallway. Al closed the door behind them as he and his brother started to take off their shoes. Ed barely had time to stand up straight before his mother pulled him into a hug.

"Hello, boys." She said happily, before pulling her younger son into a hug as well. "How was school?"

"Ok." Ed answered.

"Brother." Al said sternly.

Trisha looked at her eldest son. "What happened, Edward?"

The boy looked down, his golden eyes avoiding his mother's brown ones. "I was in a fight."

His mother sighed. "We've talked about this, Edward." She said, sitting back on her heels and putting each of her hands on each of her son's shoulders.

"But this time was different." Ed said quietly.

"How so?"

Ed finally looked into his mother's eyes. "They were picking on Al."

Trisha looked at her other son. Al sighed. "Brother, I know you were trying to protect me, but I told you I was fine. They were just saying some dumb things."

"But one of them tried to push you down."

"But I didn't get hurt."

"Only because I punched him in the face before he could do anything else!"

Trisha sighed. "Ed, I know you meant well, and I am proud that you tried to protect Alphonse, but violence is never the answer. Alright?"

Edward sighed. "Yes ma'am." Trisha smiled and kissed him on the cheek. "Ah!" Ed said, his hand immediately going to his cheek to wipe it off. "Mom!"

Trisha laughed lightly. "I can't kiss my own son?" She asked. She started to say something else, but she was interrupted by her own coughing. It started light, but then it grew harder and louder.

Worried about their mother, the boys went up to her. "Mom?" Al asked.

"Are you ok? Maybe you should lay down." Ed suggested.

Trisha smiled and waved it off. "No. Don't worry. I'm fine." She began to walk into the kitchen. "I'll start dinner."

The brothers glanced at each other. "Alright." Ed said quietly. "We'll put our stuff from school away, then come help you."

"Don't forget to wash your hands." Trisha reminded.

"Yes ma'am." Al promised and followed his brother up the stairs. They went to their room and dropped their bags on their beds. Ed let Al wash his hands in the bathroom first to he waited outside until he was done. That's when he heard something from downstairs. It sounded like glass breaking.

Ed rushed to the railing of the stairs. "Mom!" He yelled. He didn't get an answer. Panicking, he ran down the stairs, barely noticing Al yell at him, asking what was wrong. Ed ran through the entrance from the hallway into the kitchen. "Mom, what's . . ." He stopped when he looked at the floor. Behind the counter, on the ground, Ed saw his mother's hand, stretched out and lifeless. "Mom?" He asked again. She didn't say anything. He didn't know what to do. Why was she just lying there? He felt tears well in his eyes.

"Al!" He yelled, turning around, but all he was met with was darkness. "Al?" He asked again, quietly at first, then he yelled in desperation. "Alphonse!" He heard a scream in the distance as a reply. It made Ed's blood run cold. That was his brother.

Ed turned around again, frantically searching for his younger brother. Instead, he came to face more darkness. "Al?" Something was wrong, he could tell. He could smell smoke and everything was shrouded in a misty darkness. "Mom!" He yelled, tears slipping down his face. He wiped at them impatiently. "Where are you guys?" Another scream met him, this time in his mother's voice.

The boy spun around, his eyes wide. Another heart wrenching scream from Al made him fall to his knees. Where were they? Why were they screaming like that? His mother screamed again. Ed put his hands to his ears, but he could still hear them. They were both screaming at him, begging him to save them. The boy just curled into himself on his side. Now he could hear Winry screaming in pain. He couldn't do anything for them. He couldn't see them. He didn't know where they were, their voices were coming from every direction.

He tightly shut his eyes. They just got louder, screamed harder. Their voices were overlapping now, filling his head. Despair settled over him. He cared about these people the most and he couldn't help them.

Edward couldn't tell, but he was sure he was screaming now too. The voices were overwhelming. His head felt like it would split open. Their screams and his inability to stop them, broke his heart.

* * *

Edward woke up in his bed. He was panting, adrenaline rushing through his body. He sat up slowly and shakily. It had been a nightmare. Edward tried to calm himself down, repeating in his head that it had all been a dream. He pulled his knee up and pressed his forehead to it trying to stop the shaking. That dream . . . it had felt so real. It had started that way too, everything until it became dark had actually happened three years ago. And the smoke, he could still smell it.

Ed coughed. Wait. He could smell _smoke. _It was definitely real. He looked around the room. As his eyes came to the door, he seemed to stop breathing. Smoke was curling from under the doorframe and rising into the air. He stared at it, not really comprehending what he was looking at. Then, he sprang into action. He jumped to the door and put his hand on the doorknob. Then he quickly pulled it away, the knob was hot. Ed didn't stop to think, he just rammed the door with his shoulder. It took several tries, but eventually, he had been able to knock it down. He was met with a blast of hot air and he immediately began coughing. What happened?

He stepped into the hall. "Al!" He yelled. Ed heard a shout from the door across the hall. He ran at the door and yelled "stand back" before he rammed the door down. "Winry?" He asked, confused, as the dust cleared. Why was she still here? She was holding her mouth with her hands and was coughing violently. "What happened? Are you alright?"

"I'm fine." She coughed. "And I don't know what happened."

What could have happened? Ed shook his head. He didn't have time to think about that right now. Their lives were more important. "Can you walk?" Winry nodded, but just in case, Ed put a protective arm around her and held her upper arm with his other hand. "Where's Al and Pinako?"

"I think they're outside!" Winry said between coughs. Ed started to guide her forward. He would just have to hope she was right. They ran as fast as they could, coughing and trying to avoid pieces of ceiling. Eventually, they reached the front door and stumbled out into the rain.

"Edward! Winry!" Ed was relieved to hear that voice, it was Pinako. The woman ran over to them. "Are you alright? I thought you would be out here already."

"We're fine." Ed said with a low laugh. He watched as Winry and Pinako hugged before he turned to look at the burning house. "Well there goes our house, huh, Al?" He waited for his brother to respond. He turned around. "Al?" All he saw was Winry and Pinako. Ed's heart sank. "Winry." He said quietly. "Where's Al?"

Winry looked at him. Then her eyes widened as she glanced around. She looked at her grandmother. "I thought he was with you."

Then, part of the house collapsed. Pinako gasped. "Oh my . . ."

Ed stared at them for a moment, his mind blank. Then, without hesitation, he ran back into the burning house. He could faintly hear Winry call his name, telling him to come back, but he couldn't. There would be no point in going back if his brother wouldn't be there with him.

"Alphonse!" Ed yelled desperately, painfully remembering the dream he had just had. "Al!" There was no answer. He began to panic. Where was his little brother? Ed ran up the steps, deciding to check Al's room first. He wasn't there. The upstairs was now full of fire and Ed could barely get back down the steps before they collapsed. Dust and smoke filled the air and Ed couldn't help but cough harder. "Al!" He called again. He glanced through the kitchen. Not there. Then he went around the pile of stairs and ran into a bigger pile of broken wood. Ed glanced through there and was about to move on when a flash of golden yellow caught his eye. Ed's eyes widened. "Al!" That was his brother's head. Ed seemed to stand there forever in despair. Then, Al shifted and Ed sighed in relief. His brother was still alive.

"Al!" Edward yelled at his brother, kneeling down. "Come on, Al! This is no time for a nap! Wake up!"

"Brother? Winry? Where are you?" Al mumbled.

"I'm right here!" Ed said loudly. "And Winry's outside with Pinako! Now get up so we can join them!"

Al just groaned. Ed couldn't help but think that Al had been looking for everyone else when the house collapsed on him and he was knocked out. Nearby, another piece of ceiling fell down. He had to hurry.

Ed looked back down at his brother. He would have to dig him out. "Ok, Al, hold on." He said, bracing a wooden beam against his shoulder. With a heave, he pushed it away. "Either both of us are getting out, or neither of us are." Ed pulled out several pieces of wood from the stack. Then, a part of the ceiling fell down on top of the pile. He shielded his face with his arm, then looked down at Al again. He seemed to be ok, but the problem now was that fire was starting to engulf the wood. That meant he wouldn't have enough time to dig Al out before the flames reached him. But Edward Elric does not give up. Not even if death was staring him in the face.

The boy now forced his way between the beams and pieces of wood, worming his way to his brother. "You're not dying on me, Al!" He said furiously. It was hot in there and the smoke was beginning to grow thicker. "You stay with me you understand?" He said holding his brother's face in his hands "Or else I will kick your ass!" Ed let go and grabbed Al under his arm and pulled. He budged slightly, but not by much. Ed yelled in anger and looked around him. Al seemed to be held in place by a large beam that was sitting on top of his lower back.

Ed tried using his arm to push it up. It relented, but only by a few inches. That was enough. He grabbed his younger brother by the arm again and pulled. Alphonse moved several inches closer to his brother, but the fire was starting to seep its way into their little space. Ed used his arm to push away the large piece of burning wood. He yelled in pain, the wood was burning him. Ed pushed the pain out of his thoughts and brought his leg up so that he could kick the beam off of Alphonse. He was able to pull his body out enough so that only his feet were under the beam and the beam wasn't able to go low enough to crush his feet.

Ed squirmed out of the wreckage, then pulled Al out behind him. He put an arm around his waist and held his closest arm around his shoulders. Almost there.

The blond stumbled as he tried to bring Alphonse out safely, but that was really hard. Fire was now everywhere and the smoke was so thick he could barely see what he was running into. Finally he reached the front door . . . or at least where it should have been. The structure around it had collapsed. Ed cursed. How was he supposed to get Al out? He noticed a small gap between rubble and floor just as part of the house behind him collapsed. It was now or never.

Al was placed on the ground and pushed as far out of the house as Ed could push him. Then Ed squeezed in next to him halfway. Now he could see outside and was greeted with fresh air. He gulped it down gratefully as he tried to push Al out.

"Ed!" Winry yelled. Running up to them. She looked down and saw Al, relieved to see him but horrified to see his eyes closed. "What happened to Al?"

"He's fine." Ed said with a slight smile. "Now help me get him out." Winry nodded before quickly grabbing Al's arm and tugging. "Where's Pinako?"

"She went to call the fire department and an ambulance." Winry said, trying to stay calm. "I went to some neighbors to ask for help earlier. They should be here soon."

Ed nodded and continued to push Al out. He was almost free. Then, Ed heard a slight creaking sound and got a really bad feeling. "Hurry! Get Al out!"

Winry looked panicked. "What's wrong?"

"Just do it!" Ed yelled. He slightly regretted saying it like that because Winry suddenly looked frightened by him, but he wasn't angry at her, he just had a sense of urgency.

Finally, Al was out and Ed ordered Winry to drag him a safe distance away from the house. He tried to squirm out as Winry set Al on the grass several feet away. The girl quickly stood up straight to go help Ed, but Ed heard a moaning sound. His eyes widened.

"No, Winry, stay back!" He yelled, just as a large part of the roof fell on top of him.

Winry looked on in horror. "Ed!" She screamed. It was quiet for a moment. She could only hear the sound of roaring flames and pounding rain. Then, she heard Ed scream too, only his scream was different. His was in pain.

When the roof fell on him, Ed had been halfway out of the wreckage. His torso was out, but everything from his waist down was still inside. The extra wood added weight to what was over him and it snapped, coming down on his left hip. He definitely heard a crack as that happened. He hadn't felt anything at first, he just stared at the debris above him. That's when the pain registered and he felt like the fire had somehow managed to find a way into his bone. He had screamed then. It was pain like he had never felt before. Lava seemed to burn its way into his hip and upper leg.

"Ed!" Winry yelled, running around some debris until she finally saw him trapped under some more. The sight of him alive relieved her, but the pain in his face broke her heart. She rushed over, trying to move some wood away from him. He gasped as her action made a wave of pain slice through him.

"Stop! You're making it worse!" He hissed.

Winry stopped quickly. "Sorry!" Her hands immediately left the rubble and she knelt next to her friend. "Are you ok?"

Ed grimaced, then winced, his grip on a piece of wood above him tightening. "Yeah. But I think my leg is broken."

She looked him over quickly. His right arm was badly burned and oozing blood and he had several cuts on his body. "You idiot!" She yelled at him. "Why did you run back in?

"I had to get Al!" was all he could say. The pain made it hard to concentrate.

"But what if you had died?"

"You know that I can't live without him." Ed said softly. His vision was starting to get blurry and the smoke and pain in his leg was not helping with that. Winry dipped her head. He could see a tear fall down her face, or maybe that was just rainwater. "Hey." He said, moving his hand so it held hers. "I got him out and I'm right here, ok?" She looked at him and nodded. Ed started to lose consciousness. His brain was hazy. "Take care of my little brother for me, will you?"

Winry's eyes widened. "Edward, don't say that. It sounds like you're dying." His grip on her hand slackened. Her heart seemed to stop beating. "Ed?" She picked up his hand. "Ed?" She shook it slightly. He didn't respond. "Ed!" She shook his arm violently. She was angry at him. Why were his eyes closed? He knew better than to ignore her. He stayed silent. "Edward Elric!" She screamed at him. He didn't even flinch. Winry began to cry. He couldn't be dead. Not after what he just did. He had just risked his life to save his brother's. People who did those kinds of things didn't deserve to die.

Eventually, there was some shouting and sirens. A fire truck came and started to pour water on the flames. Some men pulled her away and cut Ed's body out of the wreckage. Winry sat in the grass until Pinako came and wrapped her arms around her. Winry cried silently as Pinako rubbed her back soothingly. Someone offered to take them to the hospital to wait. They agreed, and they were gently led away to a car.

Winry sat in silence next to Pinako as the car drove away. Resembol didn't have a major hospital, so they were going to one in the nearest city. The blond girl couldn't help but feel like her world was crumbling. She had just gone over to Ed and Al's house for dinner, but when it had started to rain after Ed had gone to sleep, Al had offered for them to stay overnight. Everything had seemed so normal then. How did _this _end up happening? Those boys were _family. _She couldn't _lose them. _Not after her parents died. She couldn't deal with loss _again._

At some point, they reached the hospital. Winry wasn't sure when they had gotten there, she just suddenly realized that they were in a white waiting room. She couldn't really think, her mind kept itself blank. She only had enough strength to hope that she was dreaming.

* * *

It was dark. Why was it so dark? What was this place? Where was it? There was a dull pain. Why was there pain? It was throbbing and it was starting to get annoying. He opened his eyes. Confused for a second. Then, he felt something move against his side. He moved his head slightly, trying not to make his head pound, and was surprised by who he saw sitting next to his bed, laying their head on his left arm.

"Winry?" He asked, his voice was rough, as if he had been gargling rocks.

The girl sat up quickly, looking into his eyes, her ponytail swinging behind her slightly. "Ed. You're awake." Her voice was soft, but her face lit up at the sight of his eyes open.

"Sorry, did I wake you?" He asked. She shook her head. "What-?" He began, trying to move his right arm to rub his head, but it stung a little and it was hard to move. He looked down at it and saw it was heavily bandaged. His lower body was in a cast as well. He looked at Winry questioningly.

She gave him a half smile. "You lost some blood. Also, your arm was badly burned and your hip was broken."

The boy's eyes furrowed. How did that happen? Let's see, what was the last thing he remembered? Winry and Pinako had come over for dinner . . . he and Winry got into a fight about him, well, getting into a fight . . . he gotten frustrated and went to bed . . . he had a nightmare, woke up, and saw . . .

Ed tried to sit up quickly, but his lower body painfully protested and he laid back down with a groan.

"Hey you moron! Stay down!" Winry scolded him.

"The house was on fire!" Ed said to her urgently.

Winry blinked. "Yeah, but-?"

"What happened? I got Al out right? Where is he? Pinako?"

Winry looked down at her lap, as if there was something interesting there. "My grandma's in the other room. She told me to stay in here because she didn't want me over there."

Ed's heart sank. "Is she ok?" Pinako was hurt? He couldn't bare it if she was injured . . . or worse. She and Winry were the closest things to family he and Alphonse had left.

Winry glanced at him. "She's fine."

"Well then why is she in another room?"

Winry bit her lip. She was barely able to take it herself. What was more troubling was how Ed would react. She finally sighed, gripping her hands together tightly in her lap. "She's in Al's room."

Edward looked at his friend for a long moment. What did that mean? Wait . . .

A realization hit him and he couldn't breathe. Pinako didn't want WInry in the other room. In _Al's _room.

"Winry," Ed began quietly, "why did Pinako want you in _this_ room?"

She began to tremble. "Because _someone _needed to watch you and wait until you woke up." Even her voice was shaking.

"We both know that's not what I meant." Ed growled.

WInry took in a sharp breath, as if steeling herself. "It's because of Al."

The blond boy's heart sunk. "What about him?" He asked, afraid of what she was going to say. What was so horrible that Pinako felt she had to shield Winry from it?

A tear trailed down Winry's face. "It's his condition." She choked out. "It's not good."

Edward stared at her. "What do you mean?"

The girl took in a shaky breath. "He's in the Intensive Care Unit." More tears were falling down her cheeks. "He had some burns and cuts, but also, he had a concussion and his spine was crushed. They don't know if he'll ever wake up again." Winry barely finished before she began to sob into her hands.

"What?" Ed asked, his voice cracking as he stared at her in disbelief. Al was . . . in a coma? But how? This was his brother they were talking about. That couldn't happen to him. He didn't deserve it. Ed stared at the ceiling. Was Al . . . going to die? Tears escaped Ed's eyes at that moment and he used his less bandaged arm to cover them. That thought was unbearable. He couldn't live without Al. Al was everything to him. Without his little brother, life would be a living hell.

* * *

Several weeks passed and Al was still in a coma. Ed was a wreck. Waiting for his brother to wake up was painful. Much progress had been made in Ed's condition in the meantime though. He could walk a little now, with the help of crutches, and his wounds had healed, though there would be scaring, especially on his left arm. There was a slight concern though: his hip had _broken, _which was not a small injury. It would probably affect the rest of his life and he may never walk the same way again. That wasn't Ed's biggest concern though. That spot went to his little brother.

Al's condition had barely improved since the day he had been admitted. His skull had healed and his wounds had closed up, but it didn't look like he would be waking up anytime soon.

Ed couldn't keep the dark thoughts out of his mind as he looked at Alphonse through the glass, his heart clenching painfully. What if he never woke up? What if he stayed asleep forever? What would he do with himself? Ed didn't think he could_ do_ anything. He had already planned to spend the rest of his life with his brother, his best friend. There was no other path he could take. Every single important decision that Ed made was centered around his brother. If Al was just _gone _then how would he wake up in the morning or go to the market to buy food for dinner? How would he _live?_

Ed hobbled back to his room and laid down, trying to get some rest, but he could only stare up at the ceiling.

* * *

A few more weeks passed and Ed was just sitting on his bed in his room, letting a nurse check his vitals. Then a doctor came in and stood next to Ed's bed.

"Mr. Elric," he said with a smile, "I have some good news. Your brother is awake." Ed stared at him in shock. "I have already called the Rockbells, they should be here momentarily."

Finally Ed found his voice, elation lightening a load on his chest that he hadn't noticed until it was gone. "Can I see him?" He asked quickly.

The doctor nodded. "Yes. He is stable enough. Just give us a few moments to move him out of the ICU." He gestured for the nurse to come with him and they left the room.

Ed stared after them, one thought occupying his mind. _Al was awake! _Tears slid down his cheeks. He knew better than to think they came because he was sad. They were tears of joy.

A few minutes later, Ed was walking down the hallway, crutch in hand, to Al's new room. Winry and Pinako were following close behind him. Ed walked as fast as he could in anticipation . . . and maybe a little fear. Al was really awake? Could this be true? After all this time? Ed was a little afraid that this wasn't real and that it was all a dream. However, all negative thoughts were pushed out of his mind when Ed walked through the door.

Once through the door frame, Ed caught sight of his little brother. Al looked up and smiled at him. "Brother." He sounded a little hoarse, but other than that, he looked fine.

That look on Al's face brightened his day. Ed couldn't help but smile broadly. "Hey, Al. How's it going?"

"Pretty well. How about you?" Al asked, noticing the large scar on Ed's left arm and the crutch under it.

"Oh, the usual. Broken bones, blood loss."

"Yeah, that definitely sounds normal." Al said with a laugh. Winry and Pinako had made their way to Al's bedside, Winry in tears. Ed just stood at the foot of the bed, staring at his brother. It was a miracle.

Then a doctor came in and walked to Al's unoccupied bedside. "Hello, Mr. Elric. How are you feeling?"

Al smiled at him. "I'm fine sir, and you can call me Al if you like."

The doctor smiled. "Alright, Al, do you mind if I perform some tests." Al shook his head and the doctor continued. He shone a light into Al's eyes several times, told him to follow his finger as he moved it around, and a lot of other things. Then, he lifted the covers from Al's feet. "Can you move your toes for me, Al?"

Al sat there for a moment, then frowned "No."

The doctor pursed his lips. "Ok, I will tap your leg and I want you to tell me if you can feel it." The doctor bent down and, after a moment, tapped Al's leg. He looked up at Al, but Al only looked at him expectantly. He tapped his leg again. "Al, did you feel that?"

Al looked confused. "Feel what? Did you do it already?"

"Hm. Well, I'm finished with the tests, Al, thank you. Now, if I could kindly ask all of you to please step outside, Alphonse needs some rest."

The doctor walked out and the three visitors said their goodbyes. "Get some rest, Al." Ed said with a smile, though inside he was freaking out. Why couldn't Al move his leg? Al nodded and Ed walked outside and up to the doctor. "What's wrong with Al?" He asked immediately.

The doctor looked at him thoughtfully. "We thought this might happen." He said. "When Al came in, he had some spinal damage. It didn't look bad but . . ." The doctor just shook his head. "Don't worry. We'll do whatever we can."

* * *

The next day, Ed and Winry were sitting in Al's room. Al had been a little hazy on what had happened the day the house burned down, so they were going over the story after he asked them about it.

"Brother! Why did you run back inside?" Al yelled at his older brother.

"I had to get you out!" Ed shot back.

"But what if you had died?"

Ed sighed. "You sound like Winry."

"But it's one of the basic rules of there being a fire." Winry cut in. "You don't go back inside!"

"Winry, we already went through this!" Ed said to her in annoyance. "I couldn't just _leave _my only brother in there!"

Al looked like he was about to argue, but one look at his brother's eyes made his anger melt away. "Sorry, brother. I understand." Ed looked at his brother gratefully. "So what happened next?"

"Well, let's see." Ed thought about it. "Oh, right. I ran back inside. I looked in your room, but you weren't there, so I went back downstairs and saw you under some wood. I tried to dig you out but then it caught fire and I crawled inside and tried to pull you out."

"Did you yell at me?" Al asked. Knowing his brother, Ed had probably yelled his head off at Al as if he had been awake.

"I told you to stop taking a nap and if you died I would kick your ass." Ed said in a serious tone.

Al smirked. "Well then I'm glad that I'm alive."

"Damn right!" Ed said. "Or else I would have kicked your butt." He looked at his brother, a smile threatening to form on his lips. He was glad his brother was alive too. "Anyway, you were stuck under a beam so I-." Ed faltered.

Al had been stuck under a beam. It had fallen onto his lower back. Then, Ed had roughly pulled him out and carried him. Ed's eyes widened. No, that couldn't be. The beam must have crushed Al's spine. Then he had _pulled him out _and _carried him. _Usually, if there was a chance that the spine of a person was damaged, you weren't supposed to move them, otherwise, you might just make their condition worse. When Ed had moved Al . . . had he made it worse?

The younger boy looked at his brother concernedly. "Brother, is something wrong?"

Ed looked at him for a second. "Uh. N-no. Sorry. Nothing's wrong. Don't worry."

Al and Winry glanced at each other. Something was definitely wrong. "Oh, ok." Al said. He didn't want to press Ed now, but he definitely wanted to know what he was thinking.

After that, Ed continued the story until the part where he passed out, then Winry took over and Ed zoned in and out, only hearing part of what she said. Was he the one that actually paralyzed Al? Guilt settled over him. The more he thought about it, the more he thought it to be true. He had paralyzed his brother. His grip on the arm of his chair tightened. How could he have done that to him? He was so stupid! Why hadn't he thought things through _beforehand? _What kind of an idiot was he? Because of him, Alphonse may never walk again.

* * *

Several more weeks later, Ed and Al were finally going to be released. Ed had to walk with a cane, but with a little more time, he would be able to do without it. Al, on the other hand . . . was a different story. It had finally been concluded that Al was paralyzed from the waist down. He would never walk again. Now, he would have to ride in a wheelchair wherever he went and it was all Ed's fault.

Ed now stood in Al's room, watching as Al was put into a wheelchair. The older boy's heart clenched as he stood there. When Al was seated, he thanked the nurses and they left.

"So," Alphonse began, "we finally get to leave, huh?"

Ed gave him a small smile. "Yep. We get to leave this dump."

Al sat in a thoughtful silence for a bit. "Where are we going to live?"

"Pinako invited us to stay with them."

"Hm." Al thought. He watched Ed as he spoke. He looked sad and wasn't as full of energy as he usually was. Finally, Al asked. "Brother, what's going on? It seems like something's bothering you."

Ed winced inwardly. Was he really that see-through? "It's nothing." He tried to pass it off, but Al looked at him sternly, not buying it. Ed sighed. "Fine." He glanced at his brother nervously before looking at the ground. "There's something . . . I wanted to ask you."

Al looked at his brother. "What is it?"

"Well . . ." Ed began. He was afraid now. Afraid of the answer his best friend would give him. "Do you . . .?" He glanced up. Al just looked at him, silently encouraging him to continue. Ed sucked in a breath, then turned so he was facing Al and closed his eyes tightly, letting the words rush out of his mouth. "Do you hate me?"

Al looked at him, surprised. "What?"

Ed opened his eyes and looked Al in his. They were golden, they had gotten that trait, as well as their hair color, from their father. "Do you hate me?" He asked slower, his voice shaking slightly.

The younger boy just looked at him. "That's what you've been worried about?" Ed nodded. "Why would you think I hate you?"

Edward was silent for a moment. "Your legs. The day of the fire, I moved you from under the beam. It had already damaged your spine and I picked you up and . . ." He trailed off. Just thinking about it made him feel like a piece of dirt.

Al was stunned. "Brother . . . I would never hate you."

"But you're paralyzed now! You won't ever walk again." His voice cracked.

Al just shook his head. "That doesn't matter."

"What do you mean 'doesn't matter?' That fact kind of changes your whole life!" Ed yelled. How could Alphonse not hate him after what he did?

"That's true." Al said calmly. "But I would be dead right now if you hadn't done that." Ed looked at his brother, shocked. "Brother, what you did saved my life. The fire took my legs, but you kept it from taking anything else." Al smiled." Thank you."

Edward just stared at him. Something hit his shoe and he looked down. Water? Another drop fell and he realized that they were his tears. He was crying. "Al." he choked out. He wasn't sure what to say. Hurriedly, he wiped his tears on his sleeve and stood up straight. "Al, I-."

He was cut off by the doctor as he strode in. "Hello, boys. I see that you're ready to leave."

Al smiled at him. "Yes sir."

"That's good to hear." He looked at Ed and noticed something. He seemed to be fidgeting. "Is something wrong, Ed?"

The blond in question looked up at him. "Uh." He glanced at his brother. "Maybe. I might just have a question for you."

"Please, go ahead."

The boy hesitated. "I know we've kind of talked about this before but . . . isn't there _anything _we can do about Al's legs?"

"Brother . . ."

Ed turned to him. "I understand what you told me, Al. Really, I get it, but if there is a chance we can fix it then shouldn't we try?" Ed didn't wait for Al to respond, so he turned to the doctor again.

The man regarded the boy's face. It was full of determination. "There may be a surgery that can fix his paralysis." He sighed.

Ed grabbed the front of his shirt with his free hand. "Why didn't you say anything about it before?" He growled.

The doctor put his hands up in a placating gesture. "It's a fairly new theory developed in Central. We don't have the equipment here to perform it."

The blond let him go. "Then we'll just go to Central."

The man shook his head. "Even if you went there, the cost of the surgery is very high. Not many can afford it." Ed looked distraught. "I'm sorry." He stood there for a moment longer before leaving.

Edward turned to Al. "Thanks for trying, Brother." Al said.

Ed didn't answer for a moment. "No." He said. "I can't just leave it at that." Al began to question him but he cut him off. "We're still alive, right? If we work hard enough, we can get the money for your surgery." He looked at the younger boy with a grin on his face and a plan in his mind. "We get jobs! And eventually we go to Central and fix your legs! What do you think of _that_, Alphonse?"

Al looked at him for a few seconds. Then he began to laugh.

"What's so funny?" Ed shouted, his face turning red.

"Nothing, Brother." Al said through some more laughs. Then he sobered up. "Ok, that sounds good, but I have one condition."

Ed looked at him in surprise. "What kind of _condition _could you_ possibly have?"_

"That we fix_ your_ leg too." Al answered simply.

Ed blinked. "What?"

The younger boy sighed. "Brother, your hip is broken. That affects _your _entire life. You won't be able to walk or do anything the same again. If they can fix my spine, then maybe they can fix your hip too."

"But it's not as serious as your _paralysis, _Al!"

"Still! You got hurt because you saved me."

Ed thought about arguing, but then again, he knew that Al was feeling guilty just like he had been. Ed put his hand out. "Fine, but you go first."

Al didn't move. "No, you first."

A vein in Ed's temple twitched. "Same time."

The younger boy thought about it. "Deal." They shook hands, grinning at each other and sealing their promise. Ed knew that they could do it. With Al by his side, he could do anything. They would fix their bodies and Ed _would _fix the mistake he made. They had slowly crawled their way out of hell. Why not go further? The journey would be long and hard, they would probably be tempted to give up a few times, but as long as they had each other, they would succeed.

**A/N: That was really long, about 7,000 words! I am pretty proud of myself. How was it? Did I make you think Ed and Al were dead? Or at least would die? Please review and tell me what you think. Is it worthy to be continued? And keep on the look out just in case I do continue this. Though that may not be anytime soon, I want to at least try to finish one of my other stories first. Thank for reading!**


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